The upcoming Mahindra Thar 5-door, which could be called the Thar Armada upon launch, has been one of the most highly anticipated new car launches for 2024. Sources tell us that series production of the Thar 5-door has commenced at Mahindra's Chakan plant.
- Mahindra to produce 5,000-6,000 units of Thar 5-door in a month
- Dealers are already accepting unofficial bookings
- Higher variits to get panaromic sunroof, ADAS Level 2
The homegrown SUV brand has already upped the production capacity for the Thar 5-door citing high interest from perspective customers that has been conveyed by dealers. The company had planned a monthly production run of around 2,500 units initially (around 30,000 units annually) which has now changed to more than double to almost 5,000 to 6,000 units a month. This could take annual production of the Thar 5-door alone close to 70,000 units.
Mahindra Thar 5-door will have a wider audience
The Thar 5-door will be a much more practical alternative to the existing Thar which comes with a three-door bodystyle only. It will have a longer wheelbase with more cabin room and much needed luggage space which is sorely missed on the Thar 3-door.
Just like the regular Thar, Mahindra will position the Thar 5-door at multiple price points, thanks to a wide variety of powertrain options that will be on offer with the rugged SUV. From an entry-level RWD 1.5-litre diesel to a fully loaded 2.2-litre diesel with 4WD, there will be a Thar for different customers with different requirements. Not to forget, the Thar Armada will also come with a 2.0-litre turbo-petrol engine. Mahindra is also likely to have an automatic gearbox option for every engine, which will particularly appeal to urban users.
With a long list of powertrains at multiple price points, the Thar 5-door will be eating into sales of other Mahindra SUVs, mainly the Scorpio Classic, the Scorpio N and also the XUV700, to some extent. While bookings have not commenced officially, a handful of dealers have begun accepting reservations for the Thar 5-door unofficially.
Apart from the multiple engine, gearbox options and optional 4WD gear, the Thar Armada will also get a long list of features and safety tech over the three-door model. As reported by us earlier, the Thar 5-door will have multiple airbags and Level 2 ADAS in the higher variants. Additionally there will be options in infotainment screens, upholstery, LED lighting, alloy wheel design and even sunroof, with higher variants getting a panoramic unit. Expect more details on the Thar 5-door trickle once bookings commence officially in the coming months.
With inputs from Ketan Thakkar
Dipan Sur
Viraaj Bhatnagar
Glenn Noronha
Dhruv Dhaka
